Day 28: Honesty time — I took several days off. I went away for the long weekend, and I overindulged in Mexican food, wine tastings, and cherry ice cream. When I got home, I was nursing an exhausted body and a bad case of bloat. The solution? To drink my final cup of tea. After drinking it, I went to bed feeling refreshed and lighter, then woke up the next morning ready for a workout and a day back at work.

I boil 8oz of water and put 2 tea bags in at night. If I feel very bloated when I wake up, I boil another 8oz of water and put 2 tea bags in. If you are trying to lose weight, I HIGHLY recommend drinking this tea at night. I feel amazing when I wake up in the morning. I was able to lose 60 pounds and I owe a lot of it to this tea for taking the extra bloating and the edge off. I really enjoy drinking it at night too because it soothes me, and I feel like it helps my body burn more fat as I sleep.

If you’re not sure if matcha will become a daily ritual, editor at large Christine Muhlke recommends buying a tin within the $14 to $18 range (save the under $10 matcha for baking and the over $30 for when you’re ready to commit). Some of Muhlke’s favorite brands are Chalait, Panatea, Matchaful, Kettl, and CAP Beauty, and Ippodo (seasonal releases are available at their Manhattan storefront on East 39th Street).
Rooibos tea or red tea is an herbal beverage, with medicinal properties, that is acquired from the Aspalathus linearis bush plant found in South Africa. According to the South African Rooibos Council, rooibos is not a true tea, but an herb. The fermented tea is red in color. The health benefits of red rooibos tea are abundant. It is popular due to its great taste and unique color that comes along with health benefits. We believe that if you’re going to do something, you should do it right. That mentality took us around the world in search of the best Matcha. We eventually landed in Japan, where we found some of the brightest green powder we had ever seen. Japan has warm weather, and receives plenty of sunlight and rain — all of which make it an ideal climate in which to grow leaves.
When I was conducting research into South Africa’s native herbs, I was served rooibos everywhere I went. Red in the cup, fragrant to the nose and pleasing to the palate, rooibos soon became a favorite. In every meeting, I looked forward to that red tea, which is one of the only native herbs of South Africa to achieve significant commercial status. My wife and I keep it in the tea cupboard at home, and we often turn to rooibos when we want a cup of tea without caffeine.
Rooibos is especially rich in the super-antioxidant compound quercetin. A titan among the antioxidants, quercetin imparts benefits to the heart, helps to reduce the risk of various types of cancers, fights viruses and is significantly anti-inflammatory. Inflammation is part of all known chronic degenerative diseases. The anti-inflammatory activity of quercetin means that it helps to reduce the risk of many types of health disorders.
Grown under shade for three weeks prior to plucking, gyokuro is one of the most exclusive varieties of tea produced in Japan.[60] The shading technique imparts a sweeter flavor, and produces a particularly rich color thanks to the higher amounts of chlorophyll in the shaded leaf. Gyokuro tea is associated with the Uji region, the first tea-growing region in Japan. It is often made using smaller-leaf cultivars of the tea plant.[61]
Cardiovascular diseases, which lump heart disease, stroke, and other diseases of the heart and blood vessels caused by atherosclerosis and hypertension (high blood pressure) into one category, are the most prevalent causes of death in the world. Studies show that green tea can improve some of the main risk factors for these diseases, which includes helping regulate total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides. One method by which green tea might help: it significantly increases the antioxidant levels of your blood, protecting LDL cholesterol particles from oxidation—one of the causes of heart disease.

To make red tea, combine 1 to 2 teaspoons of red tea leaves per cup of hot water, recommends the South African Rooibos Council. Steep the tea for 2 minutes or more, depending on how concentrated you want the flavor. To make iced red tea, use twice the amount of dry tea per cup of hot water and pour it over ice. Mix red tea with vanilla, fruit juice or other herbs for different flavor combinations.

Instead of being rolled, shaped and dried like traditional green tea leaves, the leaves destined to become Matcha are laid flat to dry. Grinding the leaves into Matcha is a slow process. If the mill stones overheat, the delicate green tea leaves might become damaged, which alters the flavor and taste. For reference, it takes about one hour to grind 30g of Matcha. You can make African red tea much like other herbal teas, according to Teavana. Add a 1 1/2 teaspoons of loose African red tea to make an 8-ounce serving, using boiling water. Allow the tea to steep for roughly five to six minutes, longer if you wish for a stronger tasting tea. Letting the tea steep for longer will not cause the tea to become bitter. Indeed, traditionally, African red tea has been allowed to steep for several days. If you want to make chilled African red tea, you can place the hot tea in the fridge to let it cool. Alternatively, double the amount of tea used and then pour the hot tea over a glass filled with ice cubes.

Gardenias were originally found only in China and Japan, but today there are over 200 different species of gardenia, mostly hybrids, throughout the world. Gardenia fruit is used extensively in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), where it is known as zhi zi. TCM uses gardenia primarily to promote calm, but it is also used to support bladder and urinary tract health.

Do you know what the term “cha” means, which is often found in the names of various qualities of green tea such as gyokurocha, sencha, bancha, matcha, and houjicha? It simply means “tea”, and tea is extremely popular all over India as “cha” (in Bengal & adjacent states) and “chai” in other areas. Just some fun facts for you to share with other tea lovers over your next cup of green tea!

Not sure about the weight loss end of the sales pitch however I can tell you this has a great detox or probiotic effect. I train 5 days a week and eat 90/10 clean. At times the amount of fiber in take in will cause issues with my ability to process and pass...anyhow this has helped with bloating and the above noted issue. It has a great light taste, not bitter, nor tasteless. I didn't add any sweetener and loved the taste on its own. Will buy again.

One-1/2 teaspoon serving of matcha, no more than once daily, is certainly a valuable addition to any diet, says Zeitlin. Like with another substance currently having a moment, turmeric, you can get your dose by eating or drinking it, though Zeitlin says drinking it as a tea, how it was initially intended, provides all the benefits without the added calories.

Honestly, this seemed to help out with my acne. It’s been clearing up over the past few months thanks to all of the Treeactiv products I found here on amazon, but after drinking this tea every day for a week, I noticed a drastic difference. I don’t think this tea by itself will cure acne, but I definitely think it contributed to my skin suddenly clearing up like it did. I do believe this product provided the final push I’ve been searching for. I drink 3-4 8oz every day. No skipping days. 3-4 cups. Everyday. No sweetener. No milk. Just straight tea. The taste isn’t bad at all, and you get used to it after a few days. It’s absolutely worth a try if you’re looking for something a little extra to help out on your skincare mission.
Heat or boil water, but don’t let it completely boil and become too hot, as this can destroy some of the delicate compounds found in green tea leaves. The “ideal” temperature for brewing green tea is between 160 degrees Fahrenheit to 180 degrees F (traditionally standard Chinese green teas brew at a slightly higher temperatures). Pour hot water into the teapot to steep the leaves for only about 1–3 minutes. Larger leaves need more time to steep than finer, smaller leaves. At this point you can also add any fresh herbs you plan on steeping.

Unsweetened brewed green tea is a zero calorie beverage. The caffeine contained in a cup of tea can vary according to the length of infusing time and the amount of tea infused. In general, green tea contains a relatively small amount of caffeine (approximately 20-45 milligrams per 8 ounce cup), compared with black tea, which contains about 50 milligrams and coffee with 95 milligrams per cup.

Green is truly the color of health. Matcha helps to safely cleanse and purge the body of harmful elements. Chlorophyll the element that gives green tea and other plants their signature verdant color is also a powerful detoxifier, helping to eliminate both chemicals and heavy metals from the body. And because matcha is carefully shade-grown, it is substantially richer in chlorophyll than other green teas, making it a superior daily detox.

African red tea's naturally sweet taste makes it easy to keep your added sugar intake low. According to the American Heart Association, most Americans consume too much added sugar in their diet, which can lead to weight gain and obesity. The association recommends consuming no more than 6 to 9 teaspoons of added sugar a day. Added sugar, and especially drinks high in added sugar such as sodas, have no nutritional benefits whatsoever, unlike rooibos, which has a number of associated health benefits.
Matcha, like other green teas, contains a class of antioxidants called catechins. Matcha is high in a catechin called EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate), which is believed to have cancer-fighting effects on the body. Studies have linked green tea to a variety of health benefits, like helping to prevent heart disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer, and even encouraging weight loss. However, it’s important to note that much of this research isn’t from clinical trials that show green tea causes a benefit. Instead, it’s largely from population-based studies, where researchers look at groups of people who drink green tea and compare their health outcomes to groups that don’t drink it. Studies have shown associations between tea and better health, but causation is not yet proven. Matcha is even less studied than brewed green tea.
Both nutritionists we spoke to agree that drinking tea when you wake up and before bed can help your system rev up and calm down, depending on which variety you choose. If you’re a tea fanatic, work in a few cups throughout the day: Unless you’re sensitive to caffeine, you can probably handle five to seven cups a day without any negative side effects, says Lagano. Other Risks: Long-term consumption, in excessive quantities, may give rise to problems such as insomnia, restlessness, annoyance, irritability, headaches, hypertension, abnormal heartbeat, loss of appetite, spasms, constipation, and acute addiction to caffeine. Many times, people who are addicted to caffeine do not feel normal without the substance and suffer from acute constipation, irritation, and lack of concentration in the absence of green tea.
On this episode of Consumed, host and Eater Drinks editor Kat Odell looks into the matcha production process — how it differs from that of more traditional steeped green tea, and how two of New York's noted matcha purveyors (Ippodo Tea Company and Matchabar) are working with the product today. Watch the video above for a lesson in powdered green tea; if your interest is piqued, check this map for the best places to drink matcha across the country, and these recipes for making iced matcha drinks at home, perfect for the summer.